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Sunday, August 21, 2011

A 20 Mile Run and a Few Chocolate Burps

I survived. I had so much anxiety going into this long run but I lived to tell the tale! In 3 hours, 18 minutes, I ran 20 miles. My goal was first just to complete the darn thing, but in the back of my head I was hoping to run solid 10 minutes miles throughout. I came in at a 9:54 pace, so right on the money! How I felt afterwards:

Bahahaha. Yeah freaking right. How I actually felt:

It was HARD. And LONG. (That's what she said) Honestly, it was by far my toughest run. I can't imagine topping it with another 6 miles in the actual marathon. Normally after a long run I feel on top of the world, but this time all I wanted to do was get to a toilet--and fast! An ice bath, shower, and lots of food improved my mood considerably.

I fueled with 2 Chocolate #9 gels (one at mile 5, one at mile 10) and then one honey stinger chew each mile. Those chews are more to break up the monotony for me, and give me a little motivation to get through each mile. The gels were great, although I did experience some...chocolate burps. Bizarre indeed.

This post could really have been a lot shorter: I ran. It hurt. I'm tired. I'm hungry.

How do you feel after your long runs?

Normally I feel like I'm on cloud 9 until about 30 minutes later, when I crash and need to be fed and put in front of some mindless tv. Today though, my tummy was not happy.

If you have ever run a marathon, I could really use your advice:

Did you feel like 20 miles was enough to prepare you for the big day? My RLRF plan has me running a total of 5 20-milers. I am wondering if I could benefit from upping one to 22 miles or so? Thoughts?

Yay for a 20 miler! Good job and awesome pace! If you think you can do a 22 miler than go for. They say if you can complete 18 miles then you'll be able to do a full marathon. Just make sure to listen to your body. Good Luck. Your amazing!

I am usually hopped up on adrenaline and super excited after my long runs, but occasionally I feel super tired like that too! Five twenty milers is a LOT - the most I EVER did training for a marathon was two! For my second marathon, I got bronchitis, and missed my second 20 miler, and did fine. I don't really think there's a huge benefit to training up to 22 miles personally. After 20 miles, it's all mental. The only thing it might do for you is improve your confidence, which can be a big deal. No one ever feels ready for the last six. Like, not even in the marathon. You don't even feel ready for the last mile at mile 25. You just do it anyway.

Well done. That's awesome.I've only run one marathon, so I'm no expert.We work in km over here in Aus, so I did up to 36km (of 42) in my training runs.The crowd, the achievement and plain old stubbornness will get you the rest of the way.I was on target for 3hrs 20mins at the halfway mark and lost about 7 minutes in the second half of the marathon - so you may want to ignore me!It's the best feeling though- you will love it!!:-)

Great job! I too have stomach issues on long runs. (Anything over 2 hours.) I get really queasy for the rest of the day - which makes it hard to re-fuel! I think doing 5 20-milers is plenty! I only did an 18, 19, and 20, and wish I would have done more.

FIVE 20 milers? Guuuuuuuurl, you're gonna be so prepared for that race! I actually run 2-3 20s and then the last one is a 22. It helps me a lot mentally. If you're still feeling up to 22 when the time comes, I'd say go for it!! :)

I haven't run a marathon, but I do know some experienced marathoners who might tack an extra mile or 1.5 miles onto a 20 mile run. Just be careful about doing that too close to the actual marathon. Do you read swimbikerundc? She has a lot of good info on training.

I ran my first marathon in February. I only ran 2 20 milers and I did not feel as prepared as I thought I should have. I remember thinking after the marathon was over that if I ever did that again I would run at least one traning run that was more than 20. I wouldn't do it but once, maybe twice, you don't want to totally burn yourself out. Hope this helps! :)

YAY!!! You did it! I would think more about time on feet than distance. Running for 3 hours 18 minutes will definitely prepare you for a marathon. If you do decide to run more than 20 I think it is mostly mental. Like I can actually keep going once I hit 20. :)

Yay! Congrats on an amazing run! I am usually ok after a long run. My mind is ecstatic but my legs hate me! I think you should be ok running with 20 being your max. What's 6 more miles?? Haha That's the plan I followed. I'm not gonna lie, the last 6 were not easy, but I was injured at the time and wasn't able to maintain my training over the last couple of months before my marathon. Another thing is, you don't want to overtrain. If you run 22 or 23 and hurt yourself, that's no bueno. I say stick to the plan. You're going to rock it :)

With 29 other comments, you certainly don't need mine, but I want to say GREAT JOB! 20 miles - wow!! That's just so incredible I honestly would give you a high five (or a low five if that's all the more energy you had to give). I'm the opposite of you and how you feel after a long run - I'm miserable for the first 30 (or 60 minutes) afterward and then I'm on top of the world - you are great for 30 minutes then it all goes down hill!! I've never done a full marathon, but you can bet I'm cheering you on every single step of the way (from Indiana, but still - the cheers count - I yell pretty loudly!!!!)

This is my first marathon but my plan has 1-16, 1-18, 2-20s, and 1-22-24. Most people that I run with have done multiple marathons and they've said that this kind of mileage is enough (but not too much) to get you through physically. The real issue is mental -and when you run in high humidity, high temps, or just have a hard run it's the equivalent to running that last 10k. We'll see!! Eek!

so, i had the belly flu on the day of my scheduled 20 miler. that means the longest i ran was 18 miles before my marathon which was not enough to prepare me for 26 but i was still ready. for me, i felt really great until about mile 22.5 so i told myself "next time", i'll make sure i get at least a 22 miler in as my long run. then maybe (hopefully) i'll only want to die the last two miles of the race as opposed to the last four. helpful? lol.

I'd say the one thing I've learned about long runs is that you just never know how they're going to turn out, but the more of them you do, the more experienced you become at dealing with all those different things.

way to freaking go!!!!! AND u even went faster than u had wanted, i think that deserves ample amounts of massage, vegging, and grubbage! :)

ya, after long and hard runs my stomach doesn't feel like food right after but u just have to force something down to replenish those muscles. that said, hunger gremlin kicks in a few hours later and i could eat a small person! ;)

Nice job! I would say to bump one of your 20s up to 22 or 23. For me, regardless of any physical component, I feel more confident in my training on race day knowing it's only 3 or 4 miles further than I've gone before.

Great job! Those 20 milers are tough! I think that it's really up to you. I've heard that if you run even 18 as your longest, you can prepare for a marathon. I think it's a mental thing and how comfortable you are. If you would feel better running 22 miles, give it a shot! Congrats on the long run!

It's normal to feel trashed after 20 miles! I always tried to keep active for the rest of the day after those super long runs, not lay around. Ward off the stiffness. You will handle the last 6 miles on raace day like a champ.

That is great!!! After a long run, I usually am "done" for the rest of the day. I don't want to do too much, but I don't want to laze around afterwords either. If I lay up too long, my legs will really start hurting. Usually after an extremely long run, we'll go out to eat and walk around the mall or something like that. Congrats to you....especially in this crazy heat!

I used to think the same thing about going to 22 miles. I tried it for my last training and it is really unnecessary. Especially with the RLRF plan. I am on that too, normally you wouldn't run 5 20 milers but it is good because it really teaches your endurance. Therefore you wont need the 22. My long runs totally wipe me out after. It is really hard for me to stay motivated for the rest of the day. I like to do nothing :)Sarah

woohoo!! Great job on the 20 miler! I always feel the same way- super wound up and excited that I did it for about a half hour and then I drop. Then it's just food and tv for the rest of the day :). I did a 22 miler before my first marathon- it helped me feel like I could actually maybe get to 26.2 on race day!

I've only ran one marathon. I loved everything about it. My longest run was a couple of 20 milers. For me I wish I would of ran a 22 miler Because at 22 miles, I very tired, muscle were getting very sore. This is where for me it got mentally and physically tough. Those last 4 miles are tough, but you can do it. You just slow down and take one step at a time. If you have to take a walk break that's ok. Your goal is to cross the finish line and you will. You are doing awesome. Keep it going.

Way to go! You did it!!! Congratulations on TWENTY miles - let it sink in how freakin' far youn ran!Yes, 20 is plenty. It's hard and it gets harder after that. (sorry) So there is no reason to push in to that zone more than once. If you can run 20, you can TOTALLY rock 6.2 more miles come race day!

I know I'm insane, but 20 miles is my favorite distance. I love it. I would do it 3 times a week if I had the time. I def think it is enough to prepare you for a marathon -- I verrrry rarely run 21 or 22 miles, and I've been fine in marathons. The last 6 miles of a marathon hurt because you are running faster than normal, not because it is farther than normal.